Conventionally, compact disks (hereinafter called CD's) are known as a disc shaped recording medium to record digitized information such as for music programs etc.
These CD's are only used for reproducing and a plurality of melodies are successively recorded on the disk. If the CDs are for music programs, they are also provided with a so-called lead-in region at the innermost track wherein an area called TOC (Table Of Contents) is set in order to record recording start positions etc. for each melody therein. In a reproducing device, when a CD is placed into it, the number as well as the recording start position for each melody is defined from the records of the CD placed in by reproducing the information recorded in the TOC area, and during reproduction, access to optional melodies is performed at high speeds by using the information of this TOC area.
Moreover, in the CD's used only for reproducing, each melody is usually separated by a silent part of a several seconds interval so that listeners are not displeased when melodies are reproduced successively. Depending on the contents of melodies, a fade-in process for increasing volume gradually at the starting of a melody as well as the fade-out process for decreasing volume at the end of a melody is provided in the reproducing device, resulting in high quality music for listeners.
Since the above mentioned CD's are used only for reproducing, a recording/reproducing device wherein users can optionally record music information etc. is very desirable. One example of such a device is a recording/reproducing device using a magneto-optical disk on which a rewriting process is available.
In the recording/reproducing device using above-mentioned rewritable disk, such a device is suggested wherein; absolute addresses having uneven-shaped patterns are preset when the disk was formed in order to rotatively control the disk also in the recording process by using CLV (Constant Linear Velocity) as is currently used in CD players in the recording and reproducing operations, said absolute addresses are used to access an unrecorded part as well as to perform the CLV control; and the same signal format as for the CD is used to record data on the disk.
Furthermore, in above-mentioned rewritable disk, the TOC area is also preset and when recording for music information etc. is finished, the absolute addresses for the recording start positions for the music information are recorded in said TOC area by correlating each address with the respective music numbers.
In the above-mentioned rewritable disk, rerecording is possible at an optional position in a program area, so a proper pause is not always provided between melodies as is conventional CD's. For example, as is shown in FIG. 10, an unrecorded part V for a long period sometimes exists between the first melody M1 and the second one M2. When music information with an arrangement shown in FIG. 10 is successively reproduced and in case the unrecorded part V to be reproduced as a silent part after the reproduction of the first melody M1 lasts for as long as more than seven seconds, listeners sometimes feel uncomfortable.
Furthermore, as is shown in FIG. 11 (a), in a disk wherein music programs containing from the first melody M1 to the fourth one M4 have been recorded, when another melody M2' is rerecorded at the beginning of the second melody M2, if M2' is shorter than M2 as is shown in FIG. 11 (b), the last part of the previous second melody M2 remains between M2' and the third one M3, causing a problem in that an unnecessary last part of M2 is reproduced after the reproduction of M2'. On the other hand, as is shown in FIG. 11 (c), in case M2' is longer than M2, the last part of the previous third melody M3 remains between M2' and the fourth melody M4, reproducing an unnecessary last part of M3 following after M2' in the subsequent reproduction.
Moreover, in reference to FIG. 11 (c), when the melodies on and after the third one M3 are dealt as unnecessary ones only to remain the first one M1 and the second one M2', it is troublesome that in the continuous reproducing, the melodies on and after the third one M3 will be reproduced automatically unless the device is stopped at the end of M2'.
Furthermore, when the timing to start recording and that to start playing music happen almost at the same time, or when broadcasting is used as a recording source, as is shown in FIG. 12, there may be hardly any pause between the first melody M1 and the second one M2. In that case, when the continuous reproducing is performed, M2 is reproduced immediately after M1, making the listeners feel uncomfortable.
As an additional problem, it is difficult to carry out such fade-in/fade-out processes as can be performed in the conventional CD reproduction in recording music information in the above-mentioned recording/reproducing device. More specifically, in principle the fade-in/out processes are carried out by increasing the volume level gradually at the beginning of the recording and decreasing it gradually at the end, but in recording for FM broadcasting etc., for example, it is difficult to predict the starting or ending of music, so adjusting the volume in a proper timing is very hard.
On the other hand, unlike the case of broadcasting, when CD's, records, DAT's (Digital Audio Tape) or the like are used as media for recording source, the above-mentioned fade-in/out processes can be repeatedly operated until a perfect process is obtained, but in the actual operation, rather complicated procedures are necessary, because the actuation for reproducing a recording source and that for recording/reproducing device must be started at the same time. Accordingly, it has been difficult for users in general to perform the fade-in/out processes at the same time while recording.
Moreover, due to mistaken operations etc., recording might be initiated from the middle of a melody or might be terminated in the middle of one because of the disk capacity's shortage. In that case, the reproduction of the music performance might be suddenly started or be ended in the middle, making the listeners feel displeased. When broadcasting is used as a recording source, announcements etc. might disturb the recording of music.